Making a difference: the Higher Education Achievement Report: supporting employability and career...
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Transcript of Making a difference: the Higher Education Achievement Report: supporting employability and career...
Making a difference: the Higher Education Achievement Report: supporting employability and
career development in Wales and beyond…
John Jackson, University of Bangor
Gary Jones, University of Swansea
Rob Ward, The Centre for Recording Achievement
In the beginning…White Paper on ‘the Future of Higher Education’ (HMSO, 2003)
• “we must … ensure that we have robust ways of describing, measuring and recording student achievement which are helpful to the student, to institutions, to employers, and to other stakeholders.” (para. 4.7).
The HEAR: a summative record…
1. provides a detailed (national and international) single record of student achievement; (incorporating both the DS and HE Transcript);
2. enables provision of a full academic record, including the opportunity for detailed information of achievement in respect of different forms of assessment;
A wider record…
3. provides a common structured format within which to include details of the wider achievements of the learner within section 6.1.
4. is designed to be much more than an exit document, being developed from entry to HE onwards. This will enable it to be used:• as a basis for reviewing progress and planning future activities;• to support student engagement with a range of opportunities beyond the curriculum;
• as an aide memoire for students in considering applications for sandwich placements, study abroad or internships, or for permanent employment or further study before the final award is made;
• subject to appropriate permissions, as a source of information that can be accessed by prospective employers (and admissions tutors).
Perspectives on the HEAR:
• an institutional record to be implemented;
• a richer record of achievement;
• a resource/catalyst to support student engagement and claims to employability…
• a potential resource for employers and recruiters…
www.swansea.ac.uk
Swansea University - enhancing students’ employability
Swansea University
has issued a Diploma Supplement to all undergraduate
and Masters’ students since 2005
was awarded a Diploma Supplement label for the period
2009 - 2013 - one of only 3 in the UK to have been
awarded a label in recognition of it meeting the criteria
issued a Diploma Supplement and an e-HEAR to students
in 2012 but since 2013 only issues an e-HEAR (Diploma
Supplement)
was awarded a Diploma Supplement Label, based on the
e-HEAR (Dip Supp), in December 2013.
www.swansea.ac.uk
Swansea University - enhancing students’ employability
Why did Swansea University risk its Dip. Supp. Label Status?
In the students’ interest
It is electronic and hence easily accessible by many parties
The Gradintel Software allows employers to access the records
The e-HEAR is a live document and is referred to throughout the
student’s candidature to encourage and promote development
Additional non-academic achievements can be recorded in section
6.1 such as prizes and awards – using the Gradintel software
The Academic Registrar no longer has to sign them all
personally!!!
www.swansea.ac.uk
Swansea University - enhancing students’ employability
Section 6.1 Recording Personal Achievements
Employability enhancing aspects of the curriculum
- Mobility - Work placements
- Language skills - Welsh-medium provision etc
Personal achievements and Awards
University Prizes
A range of College and University prizes are recorded on the recipient’s
HEAR (Diploma Supplement)
Swansea Employability Award Swansea International Award
Discovery Volunteering Award Egypt Centre Award
Military Training Qualification Swansea Sustainability Award
Students’ Union Skills Award (TBC) Entrepreneurship Award (TBC)
Gwobr Academi Hywel Teifi (TBC)
www.swansea.ac.uk
Challenges
• Student engagement with Gradintel;
• Staff engagement with the new personal tutoring system;
• Managing the Students’ Union Award.
Liaison between Careers & Employability, Academic Registry and Students’ Union
Existing BEA scheme has already laid much-needed groundwork for 6.1
SU formalising student involvement, recording activity
Internal activities data, from a wide range of academic and service departments, provided in bulk-upload format
Academic staff recognising the national status of HEAR and helping to promote engagement (via existing personal tutors system)
But slowly, and some more than others!
Facilitates more focus on students’ personal development
Opportunities & Strengths
Summary of the Core Programme of the BEA
Self-assessment analysis of your skills & qualities
Skills Planning
Practice profiling assessments (3rd-party-assessed)
Practice reasoning tests (3rd-party-assessed)
Career management workshops
Skills development workshops
Reflections on your activities & experiences
Personal employability statement
Summary of BEA Activities Programme
Menus
A proportion of extracurricular activitiesExperiences of workVolunteering, representation, clubs & societiesEnterprise & innovationSkills development, training & learning
A proportion of co-curricular activitiesSubject-specific activities & experiencesReflections upon your curriculum
• The Core Programme facilitates the cross-referencing of the graduate attributes identified in a skills plan, with those enhanced/attained and reflected upon throughout the bespoke Activities Programme
• In addition, the enhancement/attainment and reflection upon any equivalent graduate attributes in the curriculum can be referenced in the BEA; this provides an understanding of a ‘triangulation’ of attributes across the different aspects of the student’s university life
• HEAR will facilitate further by drawing all of these aspects into one easy-reference point
Curricular
ExtracurricularCo-curricular
More focus on students’ personal
development
Updating existing BEA regulations to include HEAR
Bilingual HEAR?
Formative access for students
Interface with existing bespoke BEA software
Empty 6.1 – suggested BEA Core as minimum, to help combat
Clearly differentiating between HEAR, BEA & CVs
Marketing at/communication with 1st year students
Some of the
Challenges
On employers and recruiters….employers come in all shapes and sizes…
Aggregated employer messages…
• Simplicity of format and concise content, though not at the extent of removing the individual and personal focus > ‘sales pitch’ for the University to be avoided!.
• Institutional verification of wider achievements seen as a new and welcome development .
• Substantial preference for an electronic HEAR, and for this to be available for scrutiny in respect of applications for internships or - in the final year of undergraduate study - for employment opportunities (the evolving HEAR).
• Primary value in enabling students to be ‘more choiceful’; importance of making the most of the University experience, thinking and acting to develop a range of experiences and achievements beyond academic programmes, and in providing a richer record they could use to articulate and evidence achievements.
HEAR supporting student/graduate progression – and employability…The applicant uses their HEAR as
an ‘aide memoire’ to help when
filling in an application form – or
developing their CV – manually.
Document share - the applicant
grants access by email to a
specific employer to whom they
have applied in support of their
application. (requires employer to
register with University, student
controls access)
Paper HEAR, virtual HEAR data reflected back to via student portal and/or end of year HEAR provided via trusted third party organisation.
Virtual HEAR (PDF) delivered by institution or trusted third party organisation.
Through electronic matching - ‘talent spotting’ - by the use of software that facilitates an interrogation of students/applicants achievements by potential employers.
‘Data Exchange’ -the incorporation of data derived from the HEAR within online application systems.
HEAR held as a data set.
HEAR held as a data set, needs to conform to technical specification.
Over to you…
Given the scenarios, what can the various actors do to enhance student employability?
Employability… a perspective from Google
‘Your degree is not a proxy for your ability to do any job.
The world only cares about — and pays off on — what you can do with what you know (and it doesn’t care how you learned it)…
.. in an age when innovation is increasingly a group endeavour, it also cares about a lot of soft skills — leadership, humility, collaboration, adaptability and loving to learn and re-learn.’